#Double green# chemistry: electrocatalytic coupling of CO2 with bio-alcohols

Incorporation of carbon dioxide into functional chemicals, e.g. monomers for polymer production, is a huge challenge, requiring inventive approaches. Currently, only one, well-explored route is available, via epoxides. The goal in the current proposal is to create alternative monomers for polyesters via incorporation of CO2. This requires not only formation of a new C-C bond; but one also needs to supply electrons to reduce the carbon dioxide. Therefore, we propose an inventive electrocatalytic approach in which the electrons to reduce the CO2 are supplied by the organic, preferably biobased molecule to which the CO2 is coupled, using the concept of a convergent, paired electrosynthesis. Specifically, alcohols are oxidized and in the process react with CO2 which is reduced, leading to 2-hydroxycarboxylates, such as lactate, or a variety of other hydroxycarboxylate monomers.